Elira stood at the edge of the crowd, clutching the basket of bread against her arm while hundreds of people moved around her in every direction. The market square had never seemed this large before.
Normally her mother stood beside her and made way to where to set their stall for the day. She knew which customers always returned and which merchants paid fairly without arguing over coin. Today, for the first time, Elira stood alone.
The square stretched before her in a sea of movement and color. Canvas tents stretched in long rows beneath the morning sun, their colored banners fluttering gently in the breeze. Merchants called out to passing customers, waving them toward tables piled high with goods gathered from every corner of the valley. Farmers unloaded wagons overflowing with vegetables. Flower sellers arranged fresh bundles into tall wooden buckets. The butchers had already begun their work, their stalls busy with customers examining cuts of pork and venison hanging from iron hooks. Music drifted through the air from a group of traveling performers who had already gathered a cheering crowd near the fountain.
"The market is busy today!" Elira said, nervously adjusting the baskets as they walked trying to not bump into other villagers. Carolina leading the way smirked slightly. "It's always busy when you're carrying half of your Mother's shop on your arms!"
Farmers had already filled their tables with piles of fresh vegetables. Carrots still dusted with soil, baskets of onions, bright heads of cabbage, and bundles of herbs tied with twine. A row of flower vendors filled the far side of the square, their tables overflowing with wildflowers gathered from the valley fields. Purple lavender, white daisies, yellow sunblooms, and roses in shades of red and pale pink created a colorful sea that drew people in from every direction.
Beyond them, textile merchants displayed long rolls of woven fabric, silks, wool, dyed linen, and embroidered shawls that shimmered softly in the sun.
And tucked between them all were the more mysterious stalls. Potion sellers.
Glass bottles filled with glowing liquids of green, amber, and violet lined wooden shelves. Small handwritten signs promised cures for sleepless nights, stronger crops, better luck, or protection from wandering spirits.
Eguine slowed her steps, staring wide eyed at everything. "I want to see the potion stall first," she whispered to her sister.
"You want to see everything first," Carolina replied not really paying attention to her sister as she lifted herself onto her toes to see ahead of the people in front of her.
Near the center of the square stood a group of traveling entertainers who had already begun drawing a crowd. A man balanced dangerously atop a tall ladder while a young woman below him played a lively tune on a small flute. Nearby, a pair of performers tossed flaming torches back and forth, sending little bursts of fire into the bright morning air. The crowd clapped and cheered.
Even the royal guards stationed around the square seemed slightly distracted by the spectacle of the entertainment. Four of them stood near the stone fountain in polished silver armor, their crimson velvet capes laid across their shoulders. Sunlight gleamed across their breastplates and helmets that had beautiful etching engraved throughout the armor.
Several village girls lingered nearby, pretending to browse stalls while sneaking glances at the guards.
Eguine leaned closer to Elira and whispered loudly enough for Carolina to hear. "That one is very handsome."
Carolina followed her gaze briefly toward one of the guards before rolling her eyes. "You say that about every guard!"
"You don't have to say that so loud!!!" Eguine replied blushing. "they are all handsome…"She whispered.
Elira laughed softly. For a moment, she forgot her nervousness.
Carolina eventually stopped near a narrow street branching away from the square. "Our first delivery is this way," she said, adjusting the baskets in her arms.
Eguine immediately groaned."But the entertainers—"
"They will still be there later," Carolina said firmly.
Carolina turned to Elira, "Are you sure you will be alright by yourself today?"
Elira looked down at the basket of bread in her arms.
She lifted her chin slightly and smiled, "I will be fine."
Carolina studied her for a moment longer than she would if she believed her. Then she nodded approvingly. "Well then, sell every loaf before noon!"
Carolina and Eugine took a step in the direction they were headed and turned to wave excitedly as they began walking down the narrow street."We will meet you at the bell tower later!"
Elira waved back.
Then she turned slowly toward the market square. Her heart was in her stomach and her legs forgot how to move. For a moment she simply stood there, watching the crowd move around her.
People everywhere.
Strangers.
Customers.
Possibilities.
She took a slow breath. Then stepped forward into the crowd. With what courage she had within she shouted,"Fresh bre—-" her voice got caught in her throat and a sudden, horrible cough burst from her chest and cut the words in half. The sound came out louder than she meant it to, echoing awkwardly between the stalls…
Several people walking past stopped and stared. One man frowned and quickly stepped away from her as if she carried some terrible illness like the plague. A woman pulling her child along the road covered the girl's mouth with her hand and hurried past.
Elira's face burned. She rather have been ran over by a carriage at this point.
She turned slightly away from the crowd, covering her mouth with her sleeve while the coughing fit finally passed. "Breathe. Breathe. Breathe. I can't let my family down." She whispered to herself and tried again, louder this time.
"Fresh bread! Warm from the oven this morning!"
A few heads turned. A woman who had been examining vegetables at a nearby stall slowed her steps and glanced toward Elira's basket. Another woman slowed near her stall smelling the warm wheat aroma that drifted in the air like an invitation.
The woman stepped closer. "Bread, you say?"
Elira nodded quickly and lifting the cloth covering the basket.
Inside, the golden loaves were still slightly warm from the oven. Their crusts were perfectly browned, dusted lightly with flour just the way her mother always finished them.
"Baked this morning!" Elira said, her voice steadier now. "My mother woke before dawn to make them!"
The woman leaned closer and inhaled deeply.
"Mmm," she hummed approvingly. "You can always tell when bread is made by a careful hand."
Elira smiled while holding her breath as the woman reached into her pouch.
A moment later, two small coins dropped into Elira's palm.
"I'll take one." Said the woman.
Elira handed over the loaf carefully, trying not to grin too widely while still holding the same breath as before.
Her FIRST SALE!!
The woman tucked the bread into her basket and walked off into the crowd.
Elira looked down at the coins resting in her hand. A huge breath was released from her chest and the weight of the day already felt lighter.
A smile slowly spread across her face.
"Fresh bread!" she called again, louder now with confidence. "Warm from the oven! Fresh bread!"
More people began to glance her way.
A farmer walking past paused to buy a loaf.
Then another woman.
Soon Elira barely had time to adjust the cloth between customers!
Her voice grew stronger with every call.
"Fresh bread!!"
The market no longer felt like a roaring sea threatening to swallow her whole. Slowly, it became something else entirely like a living tide she now stood within. The laughter, the shouting merchants, the creak of wagons and shuffle of boots wove together into a steady rhythm.
There, in the middle of it all, Elira stood with her basket of warm bread, selling to the crowd for the very first time on her own.